Compare Prices on Celebrity Silhouette Eastern Caribbean Cruises

some positive, some negative

Sail Date:
February 2013

Destination:
Eastern Caribbean

Embarkation:
Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades)

We're used to Princess but heard good things about Celebrity so we tried it.
Some pleasant things compared to Princess, a lot that we miss not having.
The library is open 24/7 and you don't have to sign books out. The buffet is open and airy, with a large selection and variety..individusl stations instead of a long line of dishes. Real drip coffee, not canned out a machine. But they don't clear away dirty dishes very quickly...lots of empty but dirty table.
No smoking in the casino or anyelse inside, but nice smoking areas on decks 5, 12, 14, and 15. The casion is farily large, but they charge you a 5% fee if you charge money to your room account. We had a concierge cabing, so check in was quick and smooth, but then they wouldn't let any passengers into their cabins until almost 1:30...so everyone was sitting in the buffet with their carry ons, making it impossible to eat lunch inside..had to go outside where it was cold and windy. I was not impressed with their dinner More
menu or the quality of food. We had select (anytime) dining and found that they were filled up with reservations between 6 and 8 pm. I don't consider that select/anytime dining. Our first dinner, we had to ask for water, bread, silverware, and coffee/tea. Most other nights, we had to ask for coffee/tea. We missed the International Cafe on Princess, where you can get a quick snack or light meal 24/7
The shows in the theater were first rate...very enjoyable. Our room was very nice, limited storage, big bathroom with shower doors instead of curtains. The sink sits above the cabinet and the water spout sticks out over the sink, making it hard to wash your face or rinse after shaving...bumped my head a couple of times. We got three pillows of different softness..very nice. The balcony is a little small. The TV control doesn't have a sleep switch. I'm used to power walking on the promenade deck (#7) on Princess, making trips completely around the ship ...deck 5 on this ship does not go all around the ship, and the ocean view is blocked by lifeboats. The jogging track on deck 12 is used by both walkers, joggers,...past loads of deck chairs, a bar, and a grill..hard to get in rythem while dodging everyone.
There are only 2 banks of elevators instead of the 3 banks...lots more walking to get around the ship. no problem for us, but it was for a number of people with walkers/canes.
The staff was great! every one of them. I was impressed with the fact that they had hand sanitizers everywhere. Even at the entrance of each shop. At the buffet and dining room, they even had a staff person squirting sanitizer in your hands as you entered. Speaking of shops, they had a limited selection of liquor (not that I would buy any on the ship) and my wife found that the price of cosmetics was higher that what she pays here in FL. They do not have an outdoor movie screen, nor do they show movies in the theater during the day. I certainly would not want to be on this ship during football season. I've watched many NFL games while on Princess, even one Superbowl.
Disembarking was terrible. First, they shut down half the elevators, so most people gave up waiting for one and carried thier carry on luggage down the stairs. Good thing it wasn't raining, as we had to walk for maybe 50 yards from the ship to a semi-covered walkway, then take 5 steps, then wait for a couple of minutes, then take 5 steps, then wait, take 5 steps then walk etc. for maybe 150 yards or more before entering the terminal. If it had been raining with the wind coming off the water, we would have been soaked in minutes.
It was a good cruise, but I'll stick to Princess for adult cruising and Carnival when we take the grandkids. Less